07/21/2008: "Today: Puget Sound Partnership Workshop"

The Puget Sound Partnership is hosting another round of public workshops, this time to solicit input on local priorities for an Action Agenda to restore and protect Puget Sound. The workshop in Friday Harbor is from 1 to 4 p.m. The meeting will be held at the SJI High School, on Blair Ave.

“Whether you live, work or play on Puget Sound, or just enjoy its undeniable beauty, you have a stake in its recovery -and I hope, feel a sense of responsibility to pass on its legacy to future generations,” said David Dicks, executive director of the Partnership.

“The broad, enthusiastic public participation in the development of the Action Agenda has been overwhelming so far, and we look forward to further conversations throughout the month of July,” Dicks said.

Those unable to attend the workshops can submit comments online at http://www.psp.wa.gov/contact.php.

The Leadership Council must adopt the Action Agenda, the region’s adaptable guide to Puget Sound recovery efforts, by Dec. 1.

The Leadership Council, the Partnership’s governing body, adopted an initial set of ecosystem priorities for bringing the Sound back to health at its June meeting. The adopted priorities, which will be the cornerstones of the final Action Agenda, are necessarily broad.

Their purpose is to provide focus to the most important issues facing Puget Sound. Scientific input will continue with further analysis of status and threats, and development of measurable indicators for ecosystem health.

The priorities were determined largely through citizen participation and technical expertise in meetings held throughout the Puget Sound. To date, 1,100 people have taken part in 19 Partnership-organized workshops.

At this month’s workshops, the public will be asked to identify local actions and programs to help implement these priorities for the community they live in -as well as review newly drafted community profiles that outline local conditions, opportunities, threats and strategies.